Social Mobility In America

When talking about income mobility, the United States pretty much at the bottom. U.S. has high intergenerational elasticity, hence, lower extent of social mobility. Despite of this fact, there are what the society calls “Dreamers”, which are the recipients of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). These dreamers were brought into the United States as children by their parents to achieve the American Dream. But what exactly the definition of the American Dream? For some people, the American Dream is defined as the traditional social ideals of the United States of America: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. However, for most people, it is defined as being able to move upward the socioeconomic ladder and change their economic

Some might argue that equality towards minorities has improved throughout the years, but numerous studies claimed the opposite. A recent study by researchers at “Northwestern, in Chicago; Harvard in Cambridge, Massachusetts; and the Institute of Social Research in Oslo, Norway, [assert that] since 1989, whites receive on average 36% more callbacks than blacks, and 24% more callbacks than Latinos. [They] observe no change in the level of hiring discrimination against African Americans over the past 25 years”(Sherman). This might not surprise some people because they are certainly aware of this situation. Racism is still taboo in contemporary society. People underestimating other people’s abilities based on their ethnicity and skin-color is certainly a problem in America. Meanwhile, here's another piece to the wealth inequality puzzle:

“Recent Census Bureau data shows that white Americans have 22 times more wealth than blacks. Twenty-two times. In 2010 the median household net worth for whites was about $111,000 compared to less than $5,000 for blacks”(Cafferty). Still not satisfied with the evidence? Well, there more problems and circumstances in America that hinders the people to achieve this dream that leads us to our second

The ACE Study (Adverse Childhood Experiences Study) “is a scientific study directly linking adverse childhood experiences to negative health and social outcomes in adulthood”(Noyes). Education, employment, and income are commonly used measures of socioeconomic status in U.S. health research, and each independently and consistently correlates with health. In addition, ACE Study conducts a research and claimed that “a small but growing body of research connects child abuse and neglect to later life education, employment, and income”. This certainly proves that decision-making in adulthood can be affected by negative childhood experiences, consequently, affecting achieving the American